Book Review: Beyond Thirds

I just finished reading Andrew Gibson’s new eBook on composition: “Beyond Thirds”.

Usually the first thing new photographers learn about composition is the “rule of thirds” and it helps the beginning photographer make more dynamic images. But then what? How do we move on from there?

Gibson explains three important guidelines that helps us continue to progress in our compositions.

First: creating order out of the chaos by continually simplifying the scene as you photograph. This is something I discussed recently in my post about “Working the Scene at Folly Beach”. As you photograph, keep excluding elements from the scene until you get a simple composition that speaks to what attracted your attention in the beginning.

Second: creating balance within the scene both with the visual elements of the scene as well as colour and tonal contrast.

Third: creating energy by being conscious about how the elements in the scene are placed within the frame and how the eye will move around the photograph.

It is these last two areas I know I will work on and come back to read again as I learn more about how to make this work in my own photography.

For only $5, Gibson’s book is a great investment that will improve your photography. I recommend giving his ebook a shot, spend an hour or so learning the concepts he outlines, and then go out this weekend and put it to work.

That’s what I am planning to do this weekend. If you do, I would love to hear how it works out for you. Let me know what great compositions you created that you might have otherwise missed.

You can purchase the ebook at the Craft and Vision store. If you purchase before midnight on November 19th and use the code BT4 when you checkout, you can get “Beyond Thirds” for only $4 or use the code BT20 to get 20% off when you buy 5 of more PDF ebooks from the Craft & Vision collection. I have read a number of ebooks from Craft and Vision and you really cannot go wrong in your selection.

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I’m Anne. This is my new life.

I traded in a traditional career for a new life as an outdoor photographer and writer. I live in an RV and travel around North America photographing beautiful places. I write about travel, photography, and how changing your life is not as scary as it seems. Read More…

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